That's a good idea. If it doesn't make it this next two years do you mind if I take that idea?
Rep - I get all my energy star appliances sales tax free over the internet. It would be nice if I could get them from a local store for the same price.
Could be a good idea, if the State of Tennessee Treasury can live with the lost sales tax revenues in exchange for nominal energy conservation gains...
For real energy conservation gains, how about passing legislation that would reduce the top end of the Tennessee highway/interstate speed limit from 70 m.p.h. to 60 m.p.h., reduce or eliminate the state sales taxes on home/residential insulation and replacement windows, exclude the value of both residential skylights and solar energy systems for tax assessment Tennessee state property tax appraisials?
Elmer has some good ideas. I have to disagree about the speed limit. For personal reasons. When I drive out west on 40 I fly.
U.S. Department of Energy
http://www.fueleconomy.gov/feg/
d...iveHabits.shtml
Drive Sensibly
Aggressive driving (speeding, rapid acceleration and braking) wastes gas. It can lower your gas mileage by 33 percent at highway speeds and by 5 percent around town. Sensible driving is also safer for you and others, so you may save more than gas money.
Fuel Economy Benefit:
5-33%
Equivalent Gasoline Savings:
$0.19-$1.23/gallon
Observe the Speed Limit
MPG decreases rapidly at speeds above 60 mph. While each vehicle reaches its optimal fuel economy at a different speed (or range of speeds), gas mileage usually decreases rapidly at speeds above 60 mph.
You can assume that each 5 mph you drive over 60 mph is like paying an additional $0.26 per gallon for gas.
Observing the speed limit is also safer.
***
The Tennessee General Assembly should be enacting legislation to drop the upper speed limit on Tennessee highways to 60 m.p.h. as both a measure toward greater fuel economy and conservation and public safety within the Volunteer State.
The TNGA should also pass legislation revising the motor vehcile registration/renewal fee schedules (e.g.license plates, etc.) so that the owners cetain classes of motor vehicles --- hybrids and other smaller fuel-efficient vehicles --- would be paying lower tag and title fees than those purchasing low MPG, gas-guzzling vehicles...
I understand everything Elmer is saying, but occasionally I do need to get somewhere quicker than normal.
Many people still do not realize that lower speed, better vehicle maintenance, optimal tire pressure etc. can increase gas mileage. When Obama mentioned that, McCain turned around and made a joke out of it.
But the thing is that it will not slow people down. The speed limit over here on 40 is 55 and people travel much fasther than that. I would support lowering it to 65, but not 60.
I would love to own a hybrid, but I cannot afford one. I do drive a Neon though, up to 34 mpg. I agree with you on that. A break on the taxes for smaller vehicles and hybrids may do some good, but many of the people who own the big SUVs are to rich to care and wouldn't mind paying the rest since it is only once-a-year. But you do make some really good points.
Your thoughts Stacey? I would go with what he is saying.
...for instance, the "green" hybrid Toyota Highlander which struggles to get 30mpg?
My 1985 MB wagon with 300k+ miles can do that.
If anything, it should be a performance incentive (emissions or mpg), not just a "type" of vehicle incentive, but face it, even if the the tag/wheel tax was reduced to zero, it would take more than the life of the vehicle to pay back a pittance of the ridiculous hybrid version markup.
Regulate traffic signals so that they must have traffic sensors and not change based solely on timer (instead of installing cameras to issue parking tickets for moving violations). Cities are where the smog is (and the interstate bottlenecks due to reduced speed limits). Red lights are where you get zero mpg. Poor traffic control is the only place the hybrid wins (0-35, stop and go). They are nothing but overweight (batteries) gassers on the interstate.
Commenting by HaloScan
